Vanderbilt teammates Brodie Johnston, Connor Hamilton and Tommy Goodin didn't know they'd spend the summer together until the Commodores' final game of the season. Eight games into Y-D's summer, the trio has become a major reason for the club's league-best 7-1 start.

Third baseman Johnston, pitcher Hamilton and corner infielder Goodin all grew up in Tennessee and decided to play for the Commodores. Johnston and Goodin were sophomores this spring while Hamilton was a freshman. Vanderbilt has long been one of college baseball's premier producers of professional talent, and the Cape League has often served as a stepping stone along the way. Players such as Sonny Gray, Mike Yastrzemski and Dansby Swanson are among the program's notable alumni. The trio hopes to emulate another Vanderbilt alum in Walker Buehler, who played for Y-D in 2014 before becoming a World Series champion with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2020.

Major league attention has surrounded Johnston for years. He posted a 1.035 OPS this spring at Vanderbilt while hitting 15 home runs and earned an invitation to the 2026 USA Baseball Collegiate National Team Training Camp later this summer. Johnston had an RBI double in Y-D's 10-3 win over Harwich on Sunday and understands the importance of playing in the Cape League.

"It's sick being here," Johnston said. "It's great to be up here and competing against some good arms, starters from the SEC and other conferences, getting to see it all. It's also good to come up here and use wood bats too, just a different experience, getting used to the next level, which is where I want to be one day."

Hamilton's first two appearances on the mound have gone well, as the rising sophomore owns a 3.18 ERA in 5 1/3 innings. He was selected in the 14th round of the MLB Draft coming out of high school but chose Vanderbilt in hopes of boosting his stock.

“The team chemistry has been awesome at Y-D, my catchers, and everyone on the field are super fun to be around," Hamilton said. “This team has just been so much fun to play for and it's been nice getting to pitch against wood bats.”

At Y-D, Hamilton is excited to still have fellow Commodores on the corners behind him.

"It's been really fun," Hamilton said. "They're really good teammates in the locker room and just good players all around. Having Brodie and Tommy behind me when I pitch here is just the best."

The corners of Y-D's infield have impressed early, and like his teammates, Goodin has enjoyed his time in Yarmouth so far. He started slowly with Y-D but has quickly found his rhythm. Goodin blasted two home runs on Sunday, both on off-speed pitches that soared over the right-field fence and into the woods. His OPS is up to .813, and he leads the team in home runs.

"Genuinely for me, ever since I was a little kid, when I play in a new environment, once I start to get my groove and relax, I play my best," Goodin said. "It takes eight or nine at-bats to get a hold of things, but now I know how to succeed here."

Y-D manager Scott Pickler couldn't agree more.

"Tommy has made the best adjustments on the club so far," Pickler said. "It didn't take us long to tell him he had to cut down on the strikeouts, but he's been a different player recently."

Goodin and Johnston started more than 35 games together at Vanderbilt this spring, and they continue to work well together. The two have combined for only one error through Y-D's first eight games.

"I love Brodie at third base because we know each other like the back of our hands," Goodin said. "It's so easy with Brodie because we can translate the stuff we learned at Vandy and bring it here. All of the bunt coverages and other defensive stuff that we learned has made us better together. The chemistry is already there, and it's awesome."

The translation is real. Pickler has long admired the culture Vanderbilt has built under head coach Tim Corbin.

"All three of these guys are great teammates, great people and they're never too into themselves," Pickler said. "I have no problem taking Vandy kids in the summer because Tim Corbin has done a great job with his players."

Johnston, Hamilton and Goodin have Monday off before hosting the Cape's version of the Commodores — Falmouth — at 5 p.m. Tuesday.